Philippe Dufresne, Canada’s privacy commissioner, has announced that his office’s 2024–25 annual report titled “Prioritizing privacy in a data-driven world” details its progress in achieving its strategic goals within the past fiscal year.
The report, tabled in Parliament, highlights the office’s achievements and activities this past year, including its continuing focus on keeping privacy and data protection front and centre in today’s increasingly data-driven landscape, according to a news release from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC).
The OPC shared that its annual report describes its work focusing on three strategic priorities. Specifically, the OPC aimed to:
- promote and protect privacy with as much impact as possible
- address and advocate for privacy amid technological shifts
- safeguard children’s privacy as they keep embracing new technologies and experiencing most of their lives in online spaces
The OPC said its efforts striving toward its first strategic priority include its plan to transform the office to help it deliver on its mandate and priorities, respond swiftly and competently to emerging issues, expand its compliance approach, and align with its enforcement and advisory activities.
Dufresne noted that he would keep fighting for modernized federal privacy laws that acknowledge privacy as a fundamental right, promote public interests, and strengthen the country’s economy.
The annual report also covers key privacy trends, including the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI, and the risks arising from data breaches. The report also addresses why collaboration is necessary within the privacy community and across regulatory jurisdictions.
“At a time when the personal information of Canadians is being collected, used, and shared at an unparalleled pace and volume, on a global scale, effective privacy protection requires more than the status quo,” Dufresne said in a message accompanying his annual report.
“Prioritizing privacy as a fundamental right reflects our Canadian values and ambitions and reinforces the freedoms and trust that underpin our democracy,” Dufresne added.
OPC’s efforts
The annual report explains the OPC’s various initiatives this past year. For instance, in February 2025, the OPC brought a notice of application against Aylo, a large operator of pornographic websites, before the Federal Court.
The application claimed that Aylo failed to sufficiently tackle concerns that the OPC identified in an investigation that wrapped up last year. The OPC requested a court order compelling Aylo to comply with federal privacy legislation.
According to its news release, from 2024–25, the OPC:
- accepted 1,279 complaints concerning the public sector Privacy Act, 1985, up from 1,113 the previous fiscal year
- received 615 breach reports from federal institutions, up from 561 the previous year
- handled matters impacting 309,865 individuals, up from 138,434 the previous year
- accepted 446 complaints and 686 data breach reports under the federal private sector privacy law
- dealt with 89 percent of all accepted private sector complaints via early resolution or summary investigations